Beauty Bag

Moisturised Sun-kissed Skin

I’ve two new products that have become permanent fixtures in my beauty bag the past few months and I’m delighted to let you know that I only have good things to say about these two items.

The first is a new product (to me) from La Roche-Posay. I didn’t think I could love La Roche-Posay any more than I already do but then I tried Lipikar Lait. I found after my holiday in the sun my skin had become extremely dry and I needed something super-duper to tackle it. I usually use olive oil as moisturiser applying it in the evenings before bed (not a good idea to lather yourself in olive oil and head outdoors). Lipikar Lait claims to have ‘48hr lipid-replenishing, no paragons, 100% hypoallergenic and minimal ingredients and fragrance’, but whatever is in it, it works, and does so bloody well! This is so moisturising and despite being rich and creamy it absorbs well with no slippy, greasy residue. It does have a slight fragrance on application but nothing to bother even my fussy nose. I thought I’d be battling my dry skin for weeks but within a few days of using this, my skin felt permanently soft and moisturised. Even using it on my body every second day (out of pure laziness), my skin feels smooth and healthy. I cannot recommend this product enough! Even if dry skin is not an issue for you, I would still encourage you to get your hands, legs, arms and torso smothered in it.

The other product I have been using for a good few months now is Bondi Sands Everyday Liquid Gold Gradual Tan Oil. I was on a search for a gradual tanner before my trip to Australia earlier in the year and this was the best of what I think is a bad bunch. I know I have spoken about fake tans before and it all boils down to the fact that I’m lazy. I want the application to be easy, even using a glove is too much effort for me and it can’t stink. It was extremely difficult to find something to meet what I think are basic requirements. Most I looked at were fake tans not gradual tanners, they were too expensive and they stunk! Then I came across Bondi Sands and when I took a sniff of it, unlike many other brands, I didn’t want to wretch at the smell of it. It actually smells ok, almost coconut-like which I don’t mind. It has a pump nozzle so it’s easy to spray on your body and it drys very quickly. I would even get dressed not long after putting it on. I started by using it every second day until I could gauge how dark the colour was and I have been using it ever since. It is a great match for my skin tone and in no way do I feel like I am wearing fake tan. Of course the more you use the darker you get, but I found this easy to manage. I suspect I will use it less in the winter months mostly because my skin will be hidden under about one hundred layers but I always feel a little nicer when my skin looks sun-kissed so it will remain in rotation even in winter. I bought the 270ml bottle in March and have only just finished it so for me it is well worth the eighteen euro.

I also tried another product in the Bondi Sands range and this was purely by accident. I didn’t want to travel with the 270ml bottle so thought I would buy one when I landed in Oz. Unfortunately I bought the Self Tan Dry Oil by mistake and only realised the morning after when I woke up clearly looking like I had fake tan on. Without realising it was the self tan oil, I used it as if it was the gradual tanner and lathered my body in it. The result was that it was too dark and definitely noticeable around my ankles and knees but I’d say with a little more care you could even get away without using a mitt to apply this. I imagine that if you did use a mitt the results would be lovely. The gradual tanner is the product for me but either way I am impressed with this brand and glad I took a risk on it.